A/N: Hey, this is a Harry/Ginny fic… I usually don't write these, but I'm writing this for my friend Gel, her username is magicalfeather411… you should read her story… ummm, yeah, about MY story… it's pre-HBP, so Dumbledore's still alive and stuff… so, yeah, that's pretty much it. Oh, and remember how I said that this is a Harry/Ginny fic? Well, it's Ron/Hermione in the background. Sorry, couldn't resist… Have fun reading!

CHAPTER ONE

"Harry? Hi, Harry!" someone called.

Harry spun around, recognizing the person's voice. "Ginny!" he cried. Then, noticing Ron, he called out his name as well.

"Good to see ya, mate!" Ron said, rushing up to his friend. "How was your summer?"

"Ah, it was great. Dudley went to this weird muggle camp with his gang, and he didn't come back for ages, and my aunt and uncle just ignored me, so it was pretty cool. Too bad I couldn't come to your place this summer… so how's George?"

"Well, he's doing better since he got bitten by that doxy, but he refused to go to St. Mungo's. He and Fred insisted on finding out how to make the cure on their own."

"Actually, they found it pretty fast, although we think that they might have stolen the last of mum's bottle last summer," Ginny cut in.

"Ron! Harry! Ginny!"

The three looked up from their conversation to see a bushy-haired witch running towards them. She stopped and flung her arms around Ginny first, then Harry, but she stopped, blushing, when she came to Ron. "Heh heh… so, how were your guys' summers?"

There was a murmur of "Good, good," and "It was fine," from her three friends.

"Well, let's find a compartment then!" said Hermione brightly.

"Good idea," Ginny commented. "Hey, you don't mind if I sit wit you three this year, do you? I'm getting a little tired of my own friends."

"Sure!" came the reply from… of course… Harry.

Harry saw, out of the corner of his eye, Ron whisper something that sounded like 'shedahim' to Hermione, and Hermione laughed. Harry rolled his eyes.

"Here's one, it's nearly empty!" said Ron, a few minutes later. "Come on, it's only Neville in here." The four filed into the room and stashed their luggage away in the racks.

An hour and a half later, the five of them were in their robes, wands out, and were boarding the horseless carriages. When they got up to the school, they exited the carriages, only to meet three of their least favorite people. (Obviously, Snape was up at the school already.)

"Well, well, well if it isn't Potty and the Weasel," taunted Malfoy, as Harry, Ron, and Hermione clamored out of the carriage. "And the mudblood, too!" Ron's fists clenched, but Harry held him back.

Ginny, approaching them with Neville close behind, muttered an indiscernible curse under her breath. Malfoy's whole body went rigid, his arms and legs snapped together, and he fell flat on his face. Ginny, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville went inside, leaving Malfoy lying on the step, while his cronies tried to remember the counter-curse they'd learned in first year.

Later, at the feast, Dumbledore stood and welcomed the student body to a new school year, saying his usual bit. Ron, as was expected, dug into the food that had appeared on the golden plates without hesitation.

Harry couldn't help but watch Ginny as she ate her dinner. When Ginny noticed that he hadn't touched his food, she decided to ask him why he was staring at her.

"Harry, do you need something?" she asked.

"Ummm, no… Well, yes… Could you pass the potatoes?"

"Sure," Ginny said, handing him the plate of roasted potatoes, like he'd asked for, but after he took them, he continued to stare at her as he'd been doing before. "Ummm, need something else?" Ginny repeated.

"Oh, sorry, I meant the mashed potatoes… I should have been more specific, huh?"

"I suppose…" Ginny said uncertainly.

"Thanks." Harry finally tore his eyes away from Ginny's freckled face and flaming red hair to pig out on his food like Ron.

Meanwhile, Crabbe and Goyle had finally been able to unfreeze Malfoy, and the three of them were now heading into the castle. The three Slytherins, instead of going to their own house table to eat, went over to the Gryffindor table instead.

Fortunately, Professor McGonagall spotted this, and came over to stop them and dock points on the first day.

After dinner, Ginny and Hermione went off to the girls' dormitories, while Neville went to the boys' room. Harry and Ron, however, stayed in the common room to talk for a while and make sure al their summer assignments were done.

"So," Ron said ten minutes later, when no one was left in the common room. "You like Ginny or what?"

"Huh?!? What… me, like your sister? What in the world gave you that idea?"

"Well, let's see… You were the one to reply when she asked us if she could sit with us on the train, you sat next to her the whole ride, you talked to her the whole ride, and last but not least, your eyes were glued to her at dinner! Now, tell me you don't like her?"

Harry felt a blush creeping up on his face. "Ummm… well I… I can explain all that!" he cried in a last attempt at hiding his feelings for his best mate's sister.

"I'm waiting…"

"Well… it's because… cause… cause I like her all right? I like Ginny. So, what are you going to do about it?"

"Nothing… except tell you this… Ginny says that she's over you, but the truth is… Ginny still likes you."

Harry sat there and let the words sink in. Ginny still likes you. "Right, well… that's enough on that subject for now… let's talk about who yoooooou like, Ronniekins…"

"Ummm… well, that's completely beside the point… I mean… what do you mean who I like… I don't like any girls…"

"Except for Hermione…" Harry taunted.

"Well, yeah, she's my best friend… other than you of course… I mean… well, you know what I mean!"

"You like her, Ron, admit it!"

Hermione, who had been on her way to the common room to retrieve her forgotten copy of Hogwarts: A History, she distinctly heard Harry and Ron talking. She knew it was wrong, but she stopped to listen anyway…

"Right, well… that's enough on that subject for now… let's talk about who yoooooou like, Ronniekins…" she heard Harry say.

"Ummm… well, that's completely beside the point… I mean… what do you mean who I like… I don't like any girls…" Ron replied.

"Except for Hermione…" she heard Harry saying in a sing-song voice.

"Well, yeah, she's my best friend… other than you of course… I mean… well, you know what I mean!" Ron was saying.

"You like her, Ron, admit it!"

"I… but, Harry, what are you thinking?" Ron said.

"Nothing! Other than the fact that you like Hermione… and I mean like like her."

"I…I do not!"

"Haha! You're blushing again!"

"Well, I'm not about to crack as easily as you did about Ginny. Because you looooove her!" Ron retorted.

Harry stuck out his tongue. This was unseen to Hermione, but that's not the point. "Well, I don't care if you tell me you like her or not, because I know that you do."

"You know what, I don't want you to go off with false ideas about how I feel about Hermione, so I'm going to tell you."

Hermione held her breath, careful not to make a sound as Ron said his next words.

"I reeeeeally like Hermione," he said. "She's reeeeeally smart and reeeeeally pretty, and… Harry, I reeeeeally like her."

"So ask her out," Harry said simply.

"Only if you ask Ginny out first."

"Well, but…Ginny's different!" Harry shouted.

"But I can't ask Hermione out!" Ron said.

"You don't have to," a voice said from the corner of the room, in the direction of the staircase.

Ron wheeled around. "HERMIONE!" he wailed. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Ummm, long enough, I guess."

"Whatdoya mean, long enough?"

"I'll leave you two alone…" said Harry, backing up the staircase to the boys' dorms.

"Hermione, what did you hear?"

"Well, I came in on Harry saying that you should talk about who you like… you know, when he called you… Ronniekins?"

Ron blushed. "Well, he got that from Fred and George! Remind me to kill all three of them tomorrow!"

"Remind me to thank Harry before you do."

"Huh?… Wait, what?"

"Remind me to thank Harry before you kill him."

"I got that part… but why?"

"Because if it weren't for him, I wouldn't have the courage to do this…" and with that, she kissed him. And it wasn't a quick kiss, either. It was a passionate one that lasted a few minutes.

When they finally broke apart, there was a stunned silence. Hermione was amazed at what she had just done and how good it had felt, and Ron was still trying to get over the shock of having Hermione actually kiss him. The two teens smiled nervously at each other before mumbling a stuttered good-night and going to bed.

A/N: OK, I'm sorry if that chapter turned out to be a little more on the Ron/Hermione side that Harry/Ginny, but I promise that chapter two will be better. Come on, now, see that button? The one that says review? PUSH IT!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAY!!!